System and method for improving customer service with models for social synchrony and homophily

ABSTRACT

Disclosed herein are systems, methods, and non-transitory computer-readable storage media for managing resources. A system for managing resources is configured for categorizing users according to at least one of common user characteristics and common user behaviors with respect to at least a first domain to yield a group of users. The system is also configured for identifying at least one user behavior during a first time interval for at least one user in the group of users and associated with an event in a second domain different than the first domain. The system is further configured for providing a response associated with the second domain for at least other users in the group of users during a second time interval after the first time interval. In the various embodiments, the response is based on the event and the at least one user behavior associated with the event.

RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No.61/371,212, filed 6 Aug. 2010, the contents of which are incorporatedherein by reference.

BACKGROUND

1. Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to managing users and more specificallyto managing responses for users in a group with common characteristicsand/or common behaviors based on user behaviors.

2. Introduction

The widespread availability of electronic media channels has resulted inimproved the flow of information across the globe. However, thiswidespread availability of electronic media channels has also resultedin several issues for various entities operating inside and outside ofsuch media channels. In particular, such entities are faced with thetask of managing the operation of the electronic media channels and flowof information over such channels on a global scale. For example, oneissue that typically arises is resource allocation. That is, withincreasing numbers of users accessing the electronic media channels, thedemands on the electronic media channels has increased and have requiredadditional allocation of resources. In another example, entities havestruggled with how to best enhance the user experience so that the needsof the various users are meet. In still another example, entities havefurther struggled to address the viral propagation of information overcommunications channels, such as the viral propagation of negativeinformation regarding the entity.

In response to such issues, many entities typically rely on post-hoctechniques. That is, examining the occurrence of an incident in the pastassociated with some aspect of the entity, identifying the good and badattributes of the response by the entity to the incident, and providingcorrective actions so that the outcome of a future occurrence of thesame or a similar incident is more favorable. For example, an entitymanaging or using one or more electronic media channels may determinethat additional resources may need to be deployed and thereafter can beused to dynamically allocate resources during an emerging incident.However, while such types of post-hoc analysis and solutions can addressthe recurrence of some types of incidents, they generally providelimited assistance in responding quickly to unexpected incidents.

SUMMARY

Additional features and advantages of the disclosure will be set forthin the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from thedescription, or can be learned by practice of the herein disclosedprinciples. The features and advantages of the disclosure can berealized and obtained by means of the instruments and combinationsparticularly pointed out in the appended claims. These and otherfeatures of the disclosure will become more fully apparent from thefollowing description and appended claims, or can be learned by thepractice of the principles set forth herein.

Disclosed herein are systems, methods, and non-transitorycomputer-readable storage media for managing resources. A system formanaging resources is configured for categorizing users according to atleast one of common user characteristics and common user behaviors withrespect to at least a first domain to yield a group of users. The systemis also configured for identifying at least one user behavior during afirst time interval for at least one user in the group of users andassociated with an event in a second domain different than the firstdomain. The system is further configured for providing a responseassociated with the second domain for at least other users in the groupof users during a second time interval after the first time interval. Inthe various embodiments, the response is based on the event and the atleast one user behavior associated with the event.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In order to describe the manner in which the above-recited and otheradvantages and features of the disclosure can be obtained, a moreparticular description of the principles briefly described above will berendered by reference to specific embodiments thereof which areillustrated in the appended drawings. Understanding that these drawingsdepict only exemplary embodiments of the disclosure and are nottherefore to be considered to be limiting of its scope, the principlesherein are described and explained with additional specificity anddetail through the use of the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates an example system embodiment;

FIG. 2 illustrates an exemplary architecture in which the variousembodiments can be implemented;

FIG. 3 illustrates a first example method embodiment;

FIG. 4 illustrates a second example method embodiment; and

FIG. 5 illustrates a third example method embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Various embodiments of the disclosure are discussed in detail below.While specific implementations are discussed, it should be understoodthat this is done for illustration purposes only. A person skilled inthe relevant art will recognize that other components and configurationsmay be used without parting from the spirit and scope of the disclosure.

The present disclosure addresses the need in the art for dynamicallymanaging users, resources, and information in multiple domains. Asystem, method and non-transitory computer-readable media are disclosedin which users, resources, and information in multiple domains can bemanaged based social synchrony and homophily of users. A briefintroductory description of a basic general purpose system or computingdevice in FIG. 1 which can be employed to practice the concepts isdisclosed herein. A more detailed description of the various embodimentsfor dynamically managing users, resources, and information in multipledomains will then follow.

In general, users with common characteristics and/or past commonbehaviors tend to act in a predictable manner. Specifically, such userstend to perform similar actions. For example, users in a group based oncommon behaviors generally tend follow the action of other users in thegroup. This is generally referred to as social synchrony. In anotherexample, users in a group based on common characteristics tend to bindtogether and act similarly. Thus, users in such a group generally tendto follow or perform the same actions as other users in the group. Thisis generally referred to as homophily.

As stated above, system, method and non-transitory computer-readablemedia are disclosed in which users, resources, and information inmultiple domains can be managed based social synchrony and homophily ofusers. That is, the analytics of activity in arbitrary domains are firstused to group users together. Thereafter, individual behaviors aretracked (in a same or different domain) to identify usage patterns.These usage patterns are then utilized to predict that other members ofthe group will act in a similar fashion. This information can then beused to drive adaptive systems to more effectively interact with users,allocate resources, or respond to incidents.

As used herein, the term “domain” refers to any sphere of activity,interest, and/or function. Further, a domain can include activities,interests, and/or functions within electronic media channels, outsideelectronic media channels, or any combination thereof. Although theexemplary embodiments will be primarily described with respect toelectronic or online domains, the various embodiments are not limited inthis regard. Rather, domains in the various embodiments can include anysphere of activity, interest, and/or function outside electronic oronline domains as well.

In the various embodiments, such groups can be identified by firstobtaining activity information, user profile information, and any otherinformation associated with users. Thereafter, models for socialsynchrony and/or homophily can be applied to identify groups of users.In the various embodiments any type of social synchrony or homophilymodels can be used without limitation. Afterwards, the behaviors of oneor more users of the group, with respect to a domain of interest, aremonitored. Notably, the domain of interest and the domain on which thegroups of users are based need not be the same or related. Finally, thisinformation is used to drive adaptive systems. That is, one or moreaspects of user interactions in the domain can adjusted, based on aprediction that the other users in the group will engage in similarbehaviors with respect to the domain.

As noted above, the data being analyzed need not be related to thedomain of interest. That is, the user information being analyzed toidentify the users in a group and the user behaviors being monitored canbe associated with in the same or different domains. For example, agroup of users can be defined by common user behaviors with respect to afirst website, however the behaviors being monitored can be thoseassociated with a second website. In another example, a group of userscan be defined by common user characteristics associated with a commonhobby or common interest, however the user behaviors being monitored canbe associated with hobbies or interests outside those common to thegroup. However, the various embodiments are not limited to thesespecific examples and other variations are possible. Some of thesevariations shall be discussed herein in the various embodiments are setforth. The disclosure now turns to FIG. 1.

With reference to FIG. 1, an exemplary system 100 includes ageneral-purpose computing device 100, including a processing unit (CPUor processor) 120 and a system bus 110 that couples various systemcomponents including the system memory 130 such as read only memory(ROM) 140 and random access memory (RAM) 150 to the processor 120. Thesystem 100 can include a cache of high speed memory connected directlywith, in close proximity to, or integrated as part of the processor 120.The system 100 copies data from the memory 130 and/or the storage device160 to the cache for quick access by the processor 120. In this way, thecache provides a performance boost that avoids processor 120 delayswhile waiting for data. These and other modules can control or beconfigured to control the processor 120 to perform various actions.Other system memory 130 may be available for use as well. The memory 130can include multiple different types of memory with differentperformance characteristics. It can be appreciated that the disclosuremay operate on a computing device 100 with more than one processor 120or on a group or cluster of computing devices networked together toprovide greater processing capability. The processor 120 can include anygeneral purpose processor and a hardware module or software module, suchas module 1 162, module 2 164, and module 3 166 stored in storage device160, configured to control the processor 120 as well as aspecial-purpose processor where software instructions are incorporatedinto the actual processor design. The processor 120 may essentially be acompletely self-contained computing system, containing multiple cores orprocessors, a bus, memory controller, cache, etc. A multi-core processormay be symmetric or asymmetric.

The system bus 110 may be any of several types of bus structuresincluding a memory bus or memory controller, a peripheral bus, and alocal bus using any of a variety of bus architectures. A basicinput/output (BIOS) stored in ROM 140 or the like, may provide the basicroutine that helps to transfer information between elements within thecomputing device 100, such as during start-up. The computing device 100further includes storage devices 160 such as a hard disk drive, amagnetic disk drive, an optical disk drive, tape drive or the like. Thestorage device 160 can include software modules 162, 164, 166 forcontrolling the processor 120. Other hardware or software modules arecontemplated. The storage device 160 is connected to the system bus 110by a drive interface. The drives and the associated computer readablestorage media provide nonvolatile storage of computer readableinstructions, data structures, program modules and other data for thecomputing device 100. In one aspect, a hardware module that performs aparticular function includes the software component stored in anon-transitory computer-readable medium in connection with the necessaryhardware components, such as the processor 120, bus 110, display 170,and so forth, to carry out the function. The basic components are knownto those of skill in the art and appropriate variations are contemplateddepending on the type of device, such as whether the device 100 is asmall, handheld computing device, a desktop computer, or a computerserver.

Although the exemplary embodiment described herein employs the hard disk160, it should be appreciated by those skilled in the art that othertypes of computer readable media which can store data that areaccessible by a computer, such as magnetic cassettes, flash memorycards, digital versatile disks, cartridges, random access memories(RAMs) 150, read only memory (ROM) 140, a cable or wireless signalcontaining a bit stream and the like, may also be used in the exemplaryoperating environment. Non-transitory computer-readable storage mediaexpressly exclude media such as energy, carrier signals, electromagneticwaves, and signals per se.

To enable user interaction with the computing device 100, an inputdevice 190 represents any number of input mechanisms, such as amicrophone for speech, a touch-sensitive screen for gesture or graphicalinput, keyboard, mouse, motion input, speech and so forth. An outputdevice 170 can also be one or more of a number of output mechanismsknown to those of skill in the art. In some instances, multimodalsystems enable a user to provide multiple types of input to communicatewith the computing device 100. The communications interface 180generally governs and manages the user input and system output. There isno restriction on operating on any particular hardware arrangement andtherefore the basic features here may easily be substituted for improvedhardware or firmware arrangements as they are developed.

For clarity of explanation, the illustrative system embodiment ispresented as including individual functional blocks including functionalblocks labeled as a “processor” or processor 120. The functions theseblocks represent may be provided through the use of either shared ordedicated hardware, including, but not limited to, hardware capable ofexecuting software and hardware, such as a processor 120, that ispurpose-built to operate as an equivalent to software executing on ageneral purpose processor. For example the functions of one or moreprocessors presented in FIG. 1 may be provided by a single sharedprocessor or multiple processors. (Use of the term “processor” shouldnot be construed to refer exclusively to hardware capable of executingsoftware.) Illustrative embodiments may include microprocessor and/ordigital signal processor (DSP) hardware, read-only memory (ROM) 140 forstoring software performing the operations discussed below, and randomaccess memory (RAM) 150 for storing results. Very large scaleintegration (VLSI) hardware embodiments, as well as custom VLSIcircuitry in combination with a general purpose DSP circuit, may also beprovided.

The logical operations of the various embodiments are implemented as:(1) a sequence of computer implemented steps, operations, or proceduresrunning on a programmable circuit within a general use computer, (2) asequence of computer implemented steps, operations, or proceduresrunning on a specific-use programmable circuit; and/or (3)interconnected machine modules or program engines within theprogrammable circuits. The system 100 shown in FIG. 1 can practice allor part of the recited methods, can be a part of the recited systems,and/or can operate according to instructions in the recitednon-transitory computer-readable storage media. Such logical operationscan be implemented as modules configured to control the processor 120 toperform particular functions according to the programming of the module.For example, FIG. 1 illustrates three modules Mod1 162, Mod2 164 andMod3 166 which are modules configured to control the processor 120.These modules may be stored on the storage device 160 and loaded intoRAM 150 or memory 130 at runtime or may be stored as would be known inthe art in other computer-readable memory locations.

Having disclosed some components of a computing system, the disclosurenow turns to FIG. 2, which illustrates an exemplary architecture 200 inwhich the various embodiments can be implemented.

As shown in FIG. 2, the architecture 200 includes one or more userterminals 202 associated with users and configured to access one or moreelectronic media channels 204 over a network 206. The electronic mediachannels 204 are at least partially controlled or managed by one or moreentity systems 208 associated with an entity, such as an enterprise.

In some embodiments, the user terminals 202 and the entity systems 208can each be embodied as one or more computing devices, such as thosedescribed above with respect to FIG. 1. However, in other embodiments, auser terminal and/or an entity system in the various embodiments caninclude more or less components than those shown in FIG. 1. Although theuser terminals 202 and the entity systems 208 are shown as single,separate components in FIG. 2, the various embodiments are not limitedin this regard. For example, each of user terminals 202 and entitysystems 208 can be implemented in a localized or distributed fashionover network 206. Further, a user terminal and an entity system can berelated or the same. That is, a user terminal and an entity system canbe the same computing device or different parts of a same computingdevice.

In the various embodiments, the network 206 can be any type ofcommunications infrastructure configured for supporting communicationsbetween the user terminals 202, the electronic media channels 204, andthe entity systems 208. Accordingly, network 206 can be formed from oneor more sub-networks. Thus, the network 206 can be embodied as anycombination of wired or wireless communications links configured for theexchange of data.

As used herein, the term “electronic media channel” refers to any nodeor connection through which data can be transmitted or received and in,or stored. In the various embodiments, such electronic media channelscan be embodied as one or more software components, one or more hardwarecomponents, or any combination thereof. For example, an electronic mediachannel can be embodied as node providing or supporting websites(including extranets and intranets), real-time communicationsapplications and/or systems (e.g., voice and/or video communications),chat-type communication applications and/or systems (e.g., instantmessaging, internet relay chat, Twitter®), electronic bulletin boardapplications and/or system, streaming media applications and/or systems(e.g., streaming audio and/or video), e-commerce applications and/orsystems, and database applications and/or systems, to name a few.However, the various embodiments are not limited in this regard and anyother electronic media channel type can be used without limitation.

In addition to the various components described above, architecture 200also includes an adaptive system 210 coupled to network 206. In thevarious embodiments, the adaptive system 210 is configured accesselectronic media channels 204 to retrieve data regarding user behaviorsand user characteristics, to identify groups of users, and to generatedata for responding to user behaviors. Although shown as a separate,standalone system in FIG. 2, the adaptive system 210 can be combinedwith one or more other components in architecture 200. For example, insome embodiments, the adaptive system 210 can be associated with anentity, thus the adaptive system 210 can be implemented as part of oneor more entity systems 208. Further, the adaptive system 210 can beimplemented in a localized or distributed fashion over network 206.

As shown in FIG. 2, the adaptive system 210 can include a groupidentification (GID) engine 212 configured for retrieving user data,analyzing the user data, and yielding one or more groups of users basedon the analysis of the user data. In particular, the GID engine 212includes one or more user data retrieval (UDR) clients 214 to access theelectronic media channels and retrieve user data therefrom. In additionto UDR clients 214, the GID engine 212 can also include a user dataprocessing module 216. The data processing module 216 can be configuredto analyze the data obtained by UDR clients 214 and yield one or moregroups of users based on common user behaviors and/or common usercharacteristics. In the various embodiments, any type of socialsynchrony or homophily models can be used at data processing module 216without limitation.

The GID engine 212 can further include a user/group (UG) database 218.The UG database 218 can be used to store group information generated bythe data processing module 216. For example, the UG database 218 can beused to store group identifying information, such as membership, commonuser behaviors associated with the group, and common usercharacteristics associated with the group, to name a few. However, thevarious embodiments are not limited in this regard and the UG database218 can be used to store any other type of group identifyinginformation.

In some embodiments, the UG database 218 can also be used by UDR clients214 to store user data being retrieved. Further, the UG database 218 canalso be used as a working memory space for data processing module.

Although the GID engine shows components 214, 216, and 218 as separate,standalone elements, the various embodiments are not limited in thisregard. In some embodiments, two or more of components 214, 216, and 218can be combined into a single component performing the variousoperations described above.

In addition to the GID engine 212, the adaptive system 210 can alsoinclude a group monitoring engine 220. The monitoring engine 220 can beconfigured for monitoring user behaviors of users in a group in a domainof interest and provide an action in response to such observed userbehaviors to deal with future user behaviors associated with other usersin the group. To this end, the monitoring engine 220 can include atleast one or more domain data retrieval (DDR) clients 222, a detectionmodule 224, and a response module 226.

In the various embodiments, the DDR clients 222 can be used to retrieveuser behavior data from electronic media channels associated with adomain of interest. The detection module 224 can be configured, based onuser behavior data from the DDR clients 222 and group data in UGdatabase 218, to determine whether the user behaviors in the userbehavior data from the DDR clients 222 are associated with a user from agroup in UG database 218. Thereafter, information regarding the groupcan be provided to the response module 226. The response module 226 canthen utilize the information regarding to group to manage future userinteractions in the domain. The management of these interactions will bedescribed below in greater detail with respect to FIGS. 3, 4, and 5.

Although the architecture 200 is described with specific components havespecific functionality, the various embodiments are not limited in thisregard. In the various embodiments, one or more of the components inarchitecture 200 can be combined. Further, architecture 200 can beimplemented in the localized or distributed fashion.

Having disclosed some basic system components and concepts, thedisclosure now turns to the exemplary method embodiments shown in FIGS.3, 4, and 5. For the sake of clarity, the method is discussed in termsof an exemplary system 200 as shown in FIG. 2, configured to practicethe method. The steps outlined herein are exemplary and can beimplemented in any combination thereof, including combinations thatexclude, add, or modify certain steps.

In the various embodiments, user behaviors can be used to manage aninterface for interactions in a domain involving users in a group. Thisis illustrated below with respect to FIG. 3. FIG. 3 is a flowchart ofsteps in an exemplary method 300 for managing user interfaces. Themethod 300 begins at step 302 and continues on to step 304. At step 304,the method begins with obtaining data indicating user characteristicsand/or user behaviors of users in at least a first domain. That is, asdescribed above, the UDR clients 214 can access the electronic mediachannels 204 and retrieve user data showing the behaviors of a set ofusers in one or more domains. For example, in domain consisting of awebsite or other online resource, the UDR clients 214 can retrieve userdata showing a history of interactions between the users and the websiteor online resource. In another example, in a domain consisting of amedical setting, the UDR clients 214 can retrieve user data showing ahistory of medical testing performed or ordered by health professionalsin response to certain types of patients. In yet another example, theUDR clients 214 can retrieve user data showing a history of purchases orselections with respect to a particular group of goods and/or services.

Alternatively or in combination with the user behavior data, the UDRclients 214 can retrieve user data showing the characteristics of agroup of users, as also described above. For example, biographicinformation for the user can be retrieved, such as age, sex, occupation,or location, to name a few. Also, interest information can be retrieved,such as hobbies and sports, memberships, and group registrations, toname a few. Further, other information can also be retrieved, such asproduct ownership. However, the various embodiments are not limited inthis regard and user characteristic data can be any data describing anyaspect of the user or the user's life.

Once the data is obtained at step 304, the method 300 can proceed tostep 306. At step 306, the users can be characterized to yield at leastone group of users, where the group consists of the users having thesame or similar user behaviors or user characteristics with respect to adomain. As described above, such categorization can be performed by thedata processing module 216 in the GID engine 212. As also describedabove, such categorization can be performed using any type of socialsynchrony or homophily models without limitation. As a result, the dataprocessing module 216 can yield one or more groups of users and thegroup information can be stored at UG database 218.

It is worth noting that users can fall into more than one group,depending on the social synchrony and/or homophily models being used.However, in some embodiments, the data processing module 216 can beconfigured to allow a user to belong to only a single group. In suchembodiments, the data processing module 216 can be configured to furtheranalyze the user characteristic and/or user behaviors of such users anddetermine which group is more appropriate. For example, if a userappears to fall into two groups associated with different sets of userbehaviors, the data processing module 216 can determine which set ofuser behaviors corresponds most closely to those of the user to selectthe appropriate group. Similarly, if a user appears to fall into twogroups associated with different sets of user characteristics, the dataprocessing module 216 can determine which set of user characteristicscorresponds most closely to those of the user to select the appropriategroup. In another example, if a user falls within two or more groupsbased on user characteristics, the user behaviors can be used todetermine which of the groups is more appropriate. Similarly, if a userfalls within two or more groups based on user behaviors, the usercharacteristics can be used to determine which of the groups is moreappropriate.

After the categorization at step 306 is completed, the method 300 canproceed to step 308. At step 308, a user behavior associated with atleast one user in a user group obtained at step 306, can be identifiedin a second domain. Such identification can be performed in two steps.First, the DDR clients 222 in group monitoring engine 220 can gatherreal-time user data regarding current user behaviors in the seconddomain. For example, the DDR clients 222 can collect data regarding userbehaviors and associated users in real-time with respect to a website, aserver, or any other type of system associated with the second domain.Second, as this data is received at the monitoring engine 220, thedetection module 224 can ascertain whether the user behaviors areassociated with any of the groups obtained at step 306. For example, theUG database 218 can be configured to store group and user information asa lookup table. In such a configuration, as the DDR client 222 obtainsthe user and associated user behavior data, the detection module canperform a lookup operation to determine whether the user behavior isassociated with a user in any of the groups specified in UG database218.

In the various embodiments, the DDR client 222 can be configured tomonitor user behaviors in different ways. For example, in someembodiments, the DDR client 222 can be configured to monitor solely foruser behaviors in the second domain associated with users from thegroups specified in UG database 218. In other embodiments, the DDRclient 222 can be configured to monitor for user behaviors in the seconddomain associated with any user and the detection module 224 canafterwards discard or ignore any data associated with such a new usernot associated with a group in UG database 218. In still otherembodiments, the DDR client 222 can be configured to monitor for userbehaviors in the second domain associated with any user. Thereafter, ifthe detection module 224 determines that a user is a new user, asdescribed above, the detection module 224 can be configured to cause theGID engine 212 to gather information regarding the new user andcategorize the new user.

It is worth noting that in the various embodiments, the second domaincan be a domain different than the first domain. However, the variousembodiments are not limited in this regard and the first and seconddomains van be the same or similar.

Once a user behavior in the second domain and associated with a user ina group is identified at step 308, the method can proceed to step 310.As noted above, it has been observed that users in a group based oncommon user characteristics or common user behaviors generally tend toact in a similar manner in most domains, regardless of the domainassociated with the initial grouping of the user. Thus, in the variousembodiments of the invention, it is assumed that when one or more usersof a group are observed performing an action in the second domain, theother users in the group will follow suit. Accordingly, this socialsynchrony or homophily among users can be used to manage userinteractions the second domain.

Referring back to FIG. 3, method 300 provides an exemplary process formanaging a user interface for users in a group in order to manage suchuser interactions. In particular, at step 310, a customized userinterface can be generated for at least the other users in the group ofusers identified at step 308. However, the invention is not limited inthis regard and the customized user interface can be generate for anyuser in the group. In the various embodiments, the form and content ofthe customized user interface can vary depending on the users, entities,and/or the second domain in question. That is, the customized userinterface can consist of a default user interface, with the addition orsubtraction of some the elements therein, or a rearrangement and/or areconfiguration (e.g., color, size, shape) of the original elements ofthe default user interface.

In the various embodiments, the user behaviors at step 308 can be usedto predict that other users in the group will perform the same actionsin the same domain. In some embodiments, if the user behavior isassociated with the accessing a particular resource associated with thesecond domain, the user interface presented to at least the other usersin the group can be adjusted to reduce the difficultly or time involvedin accessing the resource. For example, in the case of an onlineresource, a web page or other user interface can be adjust to include adirect link to the resource or provide a configuration that reduces thenumber of links that need to be followed to access the resource.

In some embodiments, the adjustment of the interface can be used tosimplify tasks. For example, in the case of paper or electronic forms,the user behaviors can be used to adjust the forms to ease theircompletion or to include additional information. That is, the content ofthe forms and/or instructions for the forms can be adjusted based on theuser behaviors of the group associated with the forms. For example, inthe case of a medical setting, a form utilized by health professionalscan be adjusted based on the behavior of other health professionals in asame group. In another example, the forms for treating patients in agroup can be adjust based on behaviors of other patients in the group.Thus, a “user behavior”, as used herein is not explicitly limited tovoluntary user actions and can also include involuntary user responsesor resulting behaviors or events due to the actions of the users in thegroup or other persons interaction with the users in the group. Forexample, based the response of one or more users in a group to amedication, protocol, or procedure, information provided to a healthprofessional, via a form or other source, can be configured to includingwarnings, suggest alternative to treatment, or provide any otherinformation for mitigating the recurrence of a negative or improve thelikelihood of a positive response.

The methods described above are also equally applicable to any otherdomain. For example, improved instructions for configuring and operatingproducts can be provided to users in a group based on, for example,prior feedback of one or more users in a group. In another example,products purchased by users in a group can be preconfigured inaccordance with the configuration utilized by other users in the group.Other types of adjustments are also possible.

In some cases, an entity may regard the user behavior at step 308 asunwanted or undesirable. Therefore, in some embodiments, the userinterface can be configured to mange such behaviors. For example, anentity may not wish users to frequent access particular resources. Inanother example, an entity may not wish that an interaction with a userresult in particular processes being performed (e.g., additional medicaltesting or misuse of a resource). In such cases, the user interface canbe reconfigured to redirect the user behaviors of users in the group.For example, a user interface can be configured to make it moredifficult to access or locate a resource or a form can be configured tomake it more difficult to allow certain procedures to be performed orcan promote more desirable procedures. Such a configuration can be usedwhen the resource is limited, results increased costs or loss of revenuefor the entity, or results in other negative or undesirable results forthe entity.

Referring back to FIG. 3, the customized interface can be provided atstep 210 in conjunction with operation of the response module 226. Forexample, when the detection module 224 detects a user behaviorassociated with a user in a group, the detection module 224 can forwardthe group information and information regarding the user behavior toresponse module 226. The response module 226 can then, directly orindirectly, cause the customized interface to be provided. For example,in the case of directly causing the customized interface to theprovided, the response module 226 can be part of the entity system 208providing the interface. In such a configuration, the response module226 can be configured to manage the entity system 208 such that when ainterface is request for an interaction involving users from the groupassociated with the user behavior identified at step 308, the responsemodule causes the entity system 208 to produce the customized interface.For example, the response module 226 can specify rules for producing thecustomized interface.

In an indirect method, the response module 226 can be configured toinform the entity system 208 how to manage an interaction involvingusers from the group associated with the user behavior identified atstep 308. For example, the response module 226 can provide the entitysystem 208 with a message indicating users in a group and the userbehavior detected. The entity system 208, based on its own rules, canthen generate the customized interface.

Once the customized interface is provided at step 310, or at leastinstructions for doing so, the method can end at step 312. However, insome embodiments, the customized interface can be continually updatedbased on the user behaviors or changes in the groups. For example, insome embodiments, the method 300 can return to step 308. That is, once afirst custom interface is provided, additional user behaviors in thesecond domain can be identified at step 308 and the interface can befurther customized at step 310. Additionally, in some embodiments, thegroups can be dynamically adjusted. That is, periodically orcontinuously, the makeup of the groups can be reevaluated. For example,the method 300 can return to step 304.

In the various embodiments, user behaviors can also be used to manageresources associated with users in a group. This is illustrated belowwith respect to FIG. 4. FIG. 4 is a flowchart of steps in an exemplarymethod 400 for managing resources. The method begins at step 402 andcontinues on to step 404. At step 404, the method begins with obtainingdata indicating user characteristics and/or user behaviors of users inat least a first domain. This step is substantially similar to step 304in method 300. Accordingly, the description above with respect to step304 is sufficient for describing step 404.

Once the data is obtained at step 404, the method 400 can proceed tostep 406. At step 406, the users can be characterized to yield at leastone group of users, where the group consists of the users having thesame or similar user behaviors or user characteristics with respect to adomain. This step is substantially similar to step 306 in method 300.Accordingly, the description above with respect to step 306 issufficient for describing step 406. Thereafter, the method 400 proceedsto step 408.

As described above, users in a group based on common usercharacteristics or common user behaviors generally tend to act in asimilar manner. As a result, users in such a group not only perform thesame actions, but typically require access to the same resources toperform such actions. Thus, in the various embodiments, resources can bemanaged based on user behaviors. Accordingly, once the users arecategorized at step 406, resources associated with a user behavior inthe second domain for at least one of the users from a group can beidentified at step 408.

At step 408, an identification of user behaviors associated with usersin a group can first be performed, by the detection module 224, asdescribed above with respect to step 308 in FIG. 3. However, in additionto identifying such user behaviors associated with a group, thedetection module 224 or the response module 226 can be configured toanalyze the behavior in the second domain and determine which resourcesare involved with the user behavior. For example, in the scenariodescribed above regarding a web page, where the identified user behavioris the selection of a link on a web page, step 408 identifies not onlythe group associated with the user behavior, but the particular resourceor target associated with the link. In another example, regarding ascenario in a medical setting, where the indentified user behavior isselection of a particular treatment or test, the resources required forperforming such a treatment or test can be identified. In such aconfiguration, a database of treatments or tests, internal or externalto adaptive system 210, can be provided to allow the detection module224 or the response module 226 to lookup the particular resourcesassociated with specific tests or treatments. In yet another example,regarding a product (i.e., goods and/or service), where the identifiedresource is the demand for the product, the resources required forsupplying the product to users can be identified. Once the group and theresource associated with the user behavior is identified at step 408,the method can proceed to step 410.

At step 410, the accessibility of the resource, with respect to thesecond domain, can be adjusted for at least the other users in the groupand based on the user behavior. That is, ensuring that when theidentified user behavior recurs with respect to the other user in thegroup, the resource will be available.

In the various embodiments, modification of the accessibility to theresources can be performed directly or indirectly by the adaptive system210. For example, the response module 224, in response to anidentification of the resource at step 408, can directly or indirectlycause adjustment of accessibility to the resource needed to support theuser behavior.

For example, in a direct adjustment, the response module 224 can belinked to or be part of an entity system 208 associated with a resource.The response module 224, in conjunction with a set of rules orinstructions in adaptive system 210, can then cause the entity system208 to allocate additional capacity to the resource. In the case of anonline or electronic resource, such as server, this can mean causing theallocating additional processing capacity, storage capacity, orbandwidth for the server. In the case of a medical setting, this canmean automatically causing the allocating of additional personnel,ordering additional supplies, and instigating additional rules forperforming such tests and treatments. In the case of a product, this canmean causing the allocating of additional manufacturing, support, andsupply chain personnel or capacity, requesting additional raw materialsor supplies, and allocating additional communications resources, to namea few. These exemplary scenarios are provided by way of example and notlimitation. Accordingly, the various embodiments can also be used toidentify any other resources needed for supporting identified userbehaviors.

In an indirect adjustment scenario, the adaptive system 210 can insteadgenerate messages for entity indicating a resource and a groupassociated with the resource. In some cases, this can be in the form ofa projected demand for the resource. The entity system 208 can thenadjust the accessibility of the identified resource based on thisinformation and its own rules.

In some embodiments, improving accessibility can also include improvinghow users can access the resource. In such embodiments, this can resultin accessibility being modified by adjusting a user interface for theusers in the group. For example, in the case of an electronic userinterface, direct links to resources can be provided and/orpre-populated or pre-selecting data input elements can be provided, forexample. However, the various embodiments are not limited in this regardand any other user interface changes for improving access to resourcesfor users can be provided.

Once the availability of the resource is modified at step 410, or atleast instructions for doing so are provided, the method can end at step412. However, in some embodiments, the availability of resources can becontinually updated based on the user behaviors or changes in thegroups. For example, in some embodiments, the method 400 can return tostep 408. That is, once an availability of a resource is modified,additional user behaviors in the second domain can be identified at step408 and the availability of the resource or other resources can befurther adjusted at step 410. Additionally, in some embodiments, thegroups can be dynamically adjusted. That is, periodically orcontinuously, the makeup of the groups can be reevaluated. For example,the method 400 can return to step 404.

In the various embodiments, user behaviors can also be used to provide aresponse to an event for users in a group. This is illustrated belowwith respect to FIG. 5. FIG. 5 is a flowchart of steps in an exemplarymethod 500 for managing information for users. The method begins at step502 and continues on to step 504. At step 504, the method begins withobtaining data indicating user characteristics and/or user behaviors ofusers in at least a first domain. This step is substantially similar tostep 304 in method 300. Accordingly, the description above with respectto step 304 is sufficient for describing step 504.

Once the data is obtained at step 504, the method 500 can proceed tostep 506. At step 506, the users can be characterized to yield at leastone group of users, where the group consists of the users having thesame or similar user behaviors or user characteristics with respect to adomain. This step is substantially similar to step 506 in method 300.Accordingly, the description above with respect to step 506 issufficient for describing step 506. Thereafter, the method 500 proceedsto step 508.

As described above, users in a group based on common usercharacteristics or common user behaviors generally tend to act in asimilar manner. As a result, users in such a group not only perform thesame actions and access the same resources, but also tend to be exposedto the same sources of information. Further, such users tend to rely onother users in the group with respect to advice and informationregarding goods and services. Accordingly, information viewed orgenerated by one the users in the group may end up being viewed or evenduplicated by all users in group. For example, the case of a negativeview with respect to good and services, viral propagation of negativeview is highly likely within the group. Even worse, these negative viewscan go beyond the group of users and can even spread among other groupsof user. Accordingly, in the various embodiments of the invention, userbehaviors can also be used to respond to such event by managing the flowof information among users in a group, providing communications for agroup, or providing communications for entities associated with theevent.

Referring back to FIG. 5, following the categorization of users at step506, the method can proceed to step 508. At step 508, a user behavior ofat least one of the users in a group and associated with an event orincident can be identified. At step 508, an identification of userbehaviors associated with users in a group can first be performed, bythe detection module 224, as described above with respect to step 308 inFIG. 3. However, in addition to identifying such user behaviorsassociated with a group, the detection module 224 or the response module226 can be configured to analyze the event associated with the userbehavior. That is, identifying the event leading to or caused by theuser behavior. For example, such events associated with a user behaviorcan include, but are not limited to: providing or reading bad ratings ofa product (goods or services), termination of a contract, switchingbetween service providers, switching credit card balances, turning downoffers for product (e.g., new, upsell, or upgrade offers). Other typesof events can be related to events with a negative impact on resources.For example, they can include events associated with resources availablein limited supply or events associated with resources having increasedcosts. However, the various embodiments are not limited in this regardand any other type of event caused by or resulting in a user behaviorcan be identified in the various embodiments. For example, the eventsidentified can also be associated with a positive impact.

In the various embodiments, the number and type of events identified andultimately addressed can vary. For example, in some embodiments, anyevent associated with a user behavior for a user from a group can beidentified. However, although various types of events can be associatedwith a user behavior of a user from the group, some of these events maybe of little or no use in managing resources or user behaviors.Accordingly, in other embodiments, only specific types of events can beidentified. For example, only events with a negative result can beidentified. In another example, only events associated with particularnegative results can be identified. However, the various embodiments arenot limited in this regard and any criteria can be used for selectingthe events to be identified.

Once an event, an associated user behavior, and an associated group havebeen identified at step 508, the method can proceed to step 510. At step510, a response to the event can be provided for at least the otherusers in the group, where the response is based on the user behavioridentified at step 508.

In the various embodiments, the response to the event can be provideddirectly or indirectly by the adaptive system 210, alone or in concertwith an entity system 208 associated with the event. For example, theresponse module 224, in response to an identification of the event atstep 508, can directly or indirectly cause a response to be generated toaddress the event associated with the user behavior at step 508.

For example, in a direct response to a negative event with respect to aproduct, the response module 224 can directly cause, according to a setof rules in the adaptive system 210, that a communication be generatedand delivered to at least the other users in the group to counter anynegative perceptions of the product. Such a communication can be directto the users, such as email or direct mailings to each of the users, orcan be targeted, such as advertisements or posting messages via socialmedia channels (e.g., Facebook®, Twitter®, electronic message boards).In the case of targeted communications, the response module 224 can beconfigured to look at past user behaviors for the users in the group andpredict media channels (electronic or otherwise) they are likely toaccess. The advertisement can then be placed on such media channels.

In some embodiments, a response need not be directed, at leastexplicitly, to the user. That is, the response can be directed to theentity or entity systems 208 to provide corrective action. For example,the response can be the triggering of reallocation of resources inresponse to such events, similar to that described above with respect toFIG. 4. In another example, such as in the case of products havinglimited availability or other issues and resulting in negative commentsfrom users from the group, the response can be to cause changes in theallocation of resources with respect to the group for such products. Inanother example, such as the case of an event having a negative impacton an entity, the response can be provide changes in user interfaces,resources, or communications, to redirect users, adjust resources, orgenerate communications to reduce or counter such negative impacts.

In an indirect adjustment scenario, the adaptive system 210 can insteadgenerate messages for entity indicating a event, a user behavior, and agroup associated with the resource. The entity system 208 can thenadjust the accessibility of the identified resource based on thisinformation and its own rules.

As noted above, the events monitored can also be events with a positiveimpact. Accordingly, in response to the detection of such events, aresponse can be generated. For example, in the case of user behaviorsassociated with users in a group and resulting in a positive result foran entity, the response can be to provide communications to the otherusers in the group indicating as much. In some cases, an enticement oroffer can be provided to encourage the desired behavior.

Once the response is provided at step 510, or at least instructions fordoing so are provided, the method can end at step 512. However, in someembodiments, the availability of resources can be continually updatedbased on the user behaviors or changes in the groups. For example, insome embodiments, the method 500 can return to step 508. That is, oncean availability of a resource is modified, additional user behaviors inthe second domain can be identified at step 508 and the availability ofthe resource or other resources can be further adjusted at step 510.Additionally, in some embodiments, the groups can be dynamicallyadjusted. That is, periodically or continuously, the makeup of thegroups can be reevaluated. For example, the method 500 can return tostep 504.

In the various embodiments described above, the user behaviors beingmonitored can vary. For example, in some embodiments the user behaviorsbeing monitored can be those associated with one or more selected orpre-defined users in the group. Accordingly, unless the user behavior inthe second domain is associated with one of these pre-defined users, noaction is taken with respect to the rest of the group. In otherembodiments, a critical mass of users can be required. That is, unlessthe user behavior in the second domain is associated with a selectednumber or percentage of users in the group, no action is taken withrespect to the rest of group. In other embodiments, a combination ofthese can be used.

Embodiments within the scope of the present disclosure may also includetangible and/or non-transitory computer-readable storage media forcarrying or having computer-executable instructions or data structuresstored thereon. Such non-transitory computer-readable storage media canbe any available media that can be accessed by a general purpose orspecial purpose computer, including the functional design of any specialpurpose processor as discussed above. By way of example, and notlimitation, such non-transitory computer-readable media can include RAM,ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storageor other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium which can be usedto carry or store desired program code means in the form ofcomputer-executable instructions, data structures, or processor chipdesign. When information is transferred or provided over a network oranother communications connection (either hardwired, wireless, orcombination thereof) to a computer, the computer properly views theconnection as a computer-readable medium. Thus, any such connection isproperly termed a computer-readable medium. Combinations of the aboveshould also be included within the scope of the computer-readable media.

Computer-executable instructions include, for example, instructions anddata which cause a general purpose computer, special purpose computer,or special purpose processing device to perform a certain function orgroup of functions. Computer-executable instructions also includeprogram modules that are executed by computers in stand-alone or networkenvironments. Generally, program modules include routines, programs,components, data structures, objects, and the functions inherent in thedesign of special-purpose processors, etc. that perform particular tasksor implement particular abstract data types. Computer-executableinstructions, associated data structures, and program modules representexamples of the program code means for executing steps of the methodsdisclosed herein. The particular sequence of such executableinstructions or associated data structures represents examples ofcorresponding acts for implementing the functions described in suchsteps.

Those of skill in the art will appreciate that other embodiments of thedisclosure may be practiced in network computing environments with manytypes of computer system configurations, including personal computers,hand-held devices, multi-processor systems, microprocessor-based orprogrammable consumer electronics, network PCs, minicomputers, mainframecomputers, and the like. Embodiments may also be practiced indistributed computing environments where tasks are performed by localand remote processing devices that are linked (either by hardwiredlinks, wireless links, or by a combination thereof) through acommunications network. In a distributed computing environment, programmodules may be located in both local and remote memory storage devices.

The various embodiments described above are provided by way ofillustration only and should not be construed to limit the scope of thedisclosure. Those skilled in the art will readily recognize variousmodifications and changes that may be made to the principles describedherein without following the example embodiments and applicationsillustrated and described herein, and without departing from the spiritand scope of the disclosure.

1. A method for managing users, comprising: categorizing users accordingto at least one of common user characteristics and common user behaviorswith respect to at least a first domain to yield a group of users;identifying at least one user behavior during a first time interval forat least one user in the group of users and associated with an event ina second domain different than the first domain; and during a secondtime interval after the first time interval, providing a responseassociated with the second domain for at least other users in the groupof users, wherein the response is based on the event and the at leastone user behavior associated with the event.
 2. The method of claim 1,wherein the at least one user behavior associated with the eventcomprises the at least one user in the group of users accessing a firstresource in response to the event, wherein the step of providing theresponse further comprises generating a user interface for the at leastother users in the group of users, wherein the user interface configuredto direct the at least other users in the group of users to at least onesecond resource different from the first resource in response to theevent.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of providing theresponse further comprises generating as the response a communicationfor the at least other users in the group of users, the communicationcomprising a response to at least one of the event and the at least oneuser behavior associated with the event.
 4. The method of claim 3,wherein the step of generating further comprises: predicting at leastone communications channel associated with the at least other users inthe group of users; delivering the communication using the at least onecommunications channel.
 5. The method of claim 4, wherein the at leastone communications channel is selected from a group consisting of directcommunications channels and indirect communications channels.
 6. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the at least one user behavior associatedwith the event comprises the at least one user in the group of usersaccessing a first resource in response to the event, and wherein themethod further comprises generating a communication for an entityassociated with the first resource, wherein the communication is basedon at least one of the event and the at least one user behaviorassociated with the event.
 7. The method of claim 6, wherein thecommunication comprises a projected demand for the first resource. 8.The method of claim 1, wherein the step of identifying further comprisesmonitoring the least one user in the group of users, wherein the atleast one user in the group of users is pre-selected.
 9. A system formanaging users, the system comprising: a processor; a first moduleconfigured to control the processor to categorize users according to atleast one of common user characteristics and common user behaviors withrespect to at least a first domain to yield a group of users; a secondmodule configured to control the processor to identify at least one userbehavior during a first time interval for at least one user in the groupof users and associated with an event in a second domain different thanthe first domain; and a third module configured to control the processorto provide a response associated with the second domain for at leastother users in the group of users during a second time interval afterthe first time interval, wherein the response is based on the event andthe at least one user behavior associated with the event.
 10. The systemof claim 9, wherein the at least one user behavior associated with theevent comprises the at least one user in the group of users accessing afirst resource in response to the event, wherein the third module usfurther configured during the providing to control the processor togenerate a user interface for the at least other users in the group ofusers, wherein the user interface configured to direct the at leastother users in the group of users to at least one second resourcedifferent from the first resource in response to the event.
 11. Thesystem of claim 9, wherein the third module us further configured duringthe providing to control the processor to generate as the response acommunication for the at least other users in the group of users, thecommunication comprising a response to at least one of the event and theat least one user behavior associated with the event.
 12. The system ofclaim 11, wherein the step of generating further comprises: predictingat least one communications channel associated with the at least otherusers in the group of users; delivering the communication using the atleast one communications channel.
 13. The system of claim 12, whereinthe at least one communications channel is selected from a groupconsisting of direct communications channels and indirect communicationschannels.
 14. The system of claim 9, wherein the at least one userbehavior associated with the event comprises the at least one user inthe group of users accessing a first resource in response to the event,and wherein the system further comprises: a fourth module to control theprocessor to generate a communication for an entity associated with thefirst resource, wherein the communication is based on at least one ofthe event and the at least one user behavior associated with the event.15. The system of claim 14, wherein the communication comprises aprojected demand for the first resource.
 16. The system of claim 9,wherein the at least one user in the group of users is pre-selected. 17.A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing instructionswhich, when executed by a computing device, cause the computing deviceto manage users, the instructions comprising: categorizing usersaccording to at least one of common user characteristics and common userbehaviors with respect to at least a first domain to yield a group ofusers; identifying at least one user behavior during a first timeinterval for at least one user in the group of users and associated withan event in a second domain different than the first domain; and duringa second time interval after the first time interval, providing aresponse associated with the second domain for at least other users inthe group of users, wherein the response is based on the event and theat least one user behavior associated with the event.
 18. Thenon-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein theat least one user behavior associated with the event comprises the atleast one user in the group of users accessing a first resource inresponse to the event, wherein the providing the response furthercomprises generating a user interface for the at least other users inthe group of users, wherein the user interface configured to direct theat least other users in the group of users to at least one secondresource different from the first resource in response to the event. 19.The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 17, whereinthe providing the response further comprises generating as the responsea communication for the at least other users in the group of users, thecommunication comprising a response to at least one of the event and theat least one user behavior associated with the event.
 20. Thenon-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein theat least one user behavior associated with the event comprises the atleast one user in the group of users accessing a first resource inresponse to the event, and further comprises instructions for:generating a communication for an entity associated with the firstresource, wherein the communication is based on at least one of theevent and the at least one user behavior associated with the event.